Midnight - Young Justice

Good Morning/True Beginning

Karra laid on a bed in Wayne Manor. Her cat silent by her head. A bedside table had a glass of water and a bowl of milk. The sleeping child looked sad but almost peaceful as the soft wind blew in from the open window, opposite to the door. Bruce Wayne came in to the room, the deep red walls, carpeting, and bedspread reminded him that nothing comes without a price. His parents death, meant he could become Batman and help the city, but he had no living family. The first Robin was his best prodigy now he is on his own in Bludhaven, but he found another robin and Batgirl. Now this girl shows up in the middle of the night but he know this girl, he has known her since the day she was born. He was there at her birth. But now was not time to dwell on the past he had a daughter to take care of. He sat on the bed and spoke to her.

"Karra honey I'm here, and your home." He paused waiting for a response, he knew she was awake, though she was good at faking it he could tell a lie from the truth. "Karra hon, I know you aren't asleep, though you do a very good job at seeming that way." Still nothing, eventually he leaned in close and whispered into her ear, "Daddy's got you and he's never gonna let go again."

In the two seconds it took for him to say that the young 5-year-old girl shot straight up and got a death grip of a hug around her Father. She weep into his fathers shoulder, "Daddy, Daddy, don't ever leave me Daddy!"

"Shhh, shhh, shhh. I'm here, I'm here. Shhh."

Alfred walked by and head the commotion. He walked in and looked around about to ask what all the commotion was, seeing the girl he silenced himself, and started to leave. But he was late, Karra saw him and and asked, "Daddy, who is that."

"That is Alfred, my butler," he paused for a moment "and now he is yours too. Alfred will you get some food for her, please."

"Yes Master Bruce." He smiled, bowed and left the room.

"Daddy?"

"Yes Karra?"

"Where is my kitty?" Karra has yet to turn around and see her leopard colored cat on the bed.

"I brought it in here." He reassured her picking up the stuffed animal and holding it our to her.

Karra's eyes lit up, "Watch this!" She flipped the cat upside down, placed four of her fingers on the cat's stomach and twisted. The cat jumped up, and after looking at her new surroundings. The bowl of milk on the side table seamed to appeal her as she went to drink.

"How did you know she would be hungry?"

"I didn't," Bruce said simply, "I just thought you would want something for her. Did you have a name for her?"

"Yeah, I call her leopard, 'cus she looks like one but I nicknamed her Lep at time 'cause it's easier."

Bruce looks back at Karra and thinks to himself 'where has she been the last three years? How is she alive?'

The Next Morning

"What are you going to do about the girl, Sir" Alfred asked Bruce, not yet knowing her name or anything else for that matter.

Bruce had many secretes only a select few league members know him as a a 'normal human' only two non-superhero people know both sides of him. "Alfred," he started, "when I went off in the mountains looking for, something, the first thing I found was a family, and a nice one at that," The only secret he still had, did he give it up after years, or keep it to remind him of the reason that he did what he did. "There was a nice young women in the family and I ended up marrying her." The hard blunt truth, the girl was a wonderful women. "After a year of two we had a girl, we named her Karra."

Realization dawned on Alfred, but he kept silent his question of where the mother of his child was.

"Topanga."

The one word answer was enough that was the women's name, but it meant nothing else to Alfred.

"She was big in the science fields and loved to experiment with anything and everything. She wanted the three of us to do a cryo-gen experiment, Karra wasn't even 1. A couple months before we would have come out of it someone attacked the lab and broke the tubes. I was told I was the only survivor of The Frozen, that's what we were called." The story came pouring out of Bruce once he started he couldn't stop himself, "The attacker was her Father, he wasn't happy we get married." The next sentence came out with a venom from the pit of hell, "He was the man that murdered my parents."

Alfred took a step back visibly horrified at the fact that Bruce's wife was the daughter of his parents murder. Alfred was too stunned to speak. The only reasonably explanation was that he didn't know she was related to him until after they got married.

Bruce continued talking as if nothing of importance had happened in the last 5 minutes, "I think I will take her with me today, can't hurt her to see at least the good side of me." He smiled, "then I can think about showing her other stuff."

Alfred knew 'other stuff' was going to be Batman The Justice League and The Team. Oh would that encounter be bitter-sweet. Yet another Bat family member to take care of after a fight.

Later that day

"Daddy why are all the buildings you have so BIG?!"

Bruce took Karra into his office and turned off all listing devices and cameras. "Karra, here you can't call me Dad in here all that these people understand is that my parents died, I was almost dead and have no family left." He took a breath before speaking again seemingly calmer. "I am sorry you can't call me that here, I do love to heat it but in this situation it just isn't possible."

"OK I guess I can do that. What do you want me to call you?"

"I guess you will have to call be Bruce while you are here."

Stay Whelmed :)